Clothes-handling mechanism



Aug. 2l., w23. 21,465,433

w. R. HAGER CLOTHES HANDLING MECHANISM Filed March 4. 1920 Patented Aug.. 21, 1923.

TEDSTJTES PATENT @FMC 'WILLIAM It. HAGER, or estraneo, ILLINOIS,

. CHINERY co., L'in., or CHICAGO, ILLINOIS,

ASSIGNOR`TO TROY LAUNDRY MA- A CORPORATION YOF NEW YORK.

CLOTHS-EANDLING MECHAN ISM.

Application filed March 4, 1920. Serial No. 363,149.

To zZZw/iom t may concer/a.'

Be it known that I, WILLIAM R. HAGER, a citizen of the United States, residingat Chicago, in the county of Cook and State oI" Illinois, have invented certain new and use ful Improvements in Clothes -Haiidling Mechanism, of which the followingA is a speciiication.

rlFhis invention relates to clothes handling A mechanism. One object of the invention is to facilitate the burdensome handling of clothes',les

z pecially when the latter are heavy.

Another VObject is `to provide simpleiand eiiicient clotheshandling mechanism which Vmay be used as an attachment for ironing machines and the like. Y

These and other objects are accomplished by means of the arrangement disclosed on the accompanying,sheet` of drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a perspective view of an iron` tion will be apparent from the following Vdescription and drawings and will be .par-

ticularly pointed out in the appended claims.

The handling of clothes inl laundries, es" pecially when the clothesy are heavy, is a very.` burdensomeA task :and one which -is extremely objectionable from the viewpoint,A

of employes. To take a specific instance,

clothes mounted over a suitable supporting bar which are transferred r'omaiiy suitable clothes storage to an' ironing machine, weigh,

Y as laundries are operated, about one hundred pounds. Girls in laundries naturally4 object'to such heavy work. Accordingly, I have provided means which greatly facilitates the handlingfof clothes, and particu-4 larly transferring same from clothes storage means to a clothes-'treating machine;

in connection with an ironing machine Vl() `blankets or other articles ,and which the laundry ltransferring from the clothes storage means having the usual conveyor l1 for passing the clothes placed thereon to rolls which iron the clothes. It is the practice to provide some suitable rack or clothes storage near the ironing machine. In this case I have shown a rack or clothes storage in cluding tour pedestals 12, 13, 14 and 15, the upper ends of pedestals 12 and 13 being connected by a transversely extendingbar t16, and the upper ends of the pedestals 14 `and 15 being connected by a similar transversely extending bar 17. To support the clothes on the rack bars 16 and 17, I have provided a plurality of members 18 having handles 19 and which extend between and rest upon the bars 16 and 17, said members 18 receiving and holding` clothes, which, in

this particular` instance, may be sheets, 20. It is the clothes-holding members 18 and the clothes placed thereon which are relatively heavy helpers object to to the ironing or clothes-treating machine. To facilitate the transfer of clothes between the clothes storage means and the clothes? treating machine, I have provided transfer means, including two lazy-tongs 21 and 22, the extensible ends of which are provided with standards 23, the upper ends of which have receiving portions `241C for the clothesholdinglmembers 18, said standards 23 being connected by a tie rod 25. The'upper end of each of the two forward links 26 `of the lazy-tongs is pivotally connected to its associated standard 23, the lower end of each of the other two front links 27 of the lazy-tongs having a pin 28 slidably mounted in elongated slotted portions 29 of abracket 30 secured to the lower end of the standard 23 in each case. One rearwardlink 31 of each of the lazy-tongs has its upper end pivotally secured to a frame portion 32 of the ironing y machine, and the other rear link 32 of each of the lazy-tongs is provided with a pin 33 which is slidably mounted in elongated grooves 34 in a bracket 35 forming a part of or supported by the frame of the ironing machine. It will be appreciated that it is necessary to provide for some vertical move-l ment of the links of the lazy-tongs when said lazy-tongs are extended and Vretracted. f For Y this. reason the slotted brackets 30 and 35 I have chosen to illustrate my inventionV are provided. It will be noted thatfthe lazy-tongs 'extending between the ironing machine', and the clothes rack incline slightly shown upwardly from the ironing machine toward the clothes rack, the objectbeing to cause the'` lazy-tongs automatically toV retract or travel from the clothes rack to the ironingA machine without any external force being applied thereto. The'lazy-tongs autom-atically, when unloaded, will retract as above mentioned. To facilitate this movement, however, I have provided weights 36 which are connected to the cross pins 33 aiid'which pull downwardly upon the links 3Q, such action naturally being to retract the lazytongs. When the clothes-holding member 18 and clothes carried thereby are mounted upon the carrier or lazy-tongs, the weight of the former increases the tendency of the lazy-tongs to retract. By means of this arrangement the heavy clothes may be transferred from the clothes rack or storage means to the ironing machine. in arsimple and efficient manner and with very little eilort. When the lazy-tongs are extended, as

y locking dogs 38v will engage the locking isis members 39 for holding the lazy-tongs or the carrier in extended position, it being understood that the weight of the hooked poi'- t'ions 37 of the dogs 38 is sufficient to cause the hooked ends ofthe dogs to move downwardly under the influence of gravity. However, th'e locking' dogs 38 are automaticallj7 unlocked to release the carrier'or lazytongs when the clothes-holding member 18` is'slid from the supporting bars 16 and 17 onto'l th'e supporting standards Q3 of th'e c'arrier, the clothes-holding members 18 passing over the dogs 38 and engaging the then upl the locking dogs 38 and Y depressing same to release the dogs and acstanding ends 41 of c'ordingly the clothes carrier. As mentioned hereinabove, when this happens the lazytongs Vautomatically retract and transfer the clothes from the rack to the ironing' or other v clothes-treating machine.

It is my intention to cover all modifications of the invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the following claims.

I claim: l. In clothes-handling mechanism for transferring clothes, the combination of a clothes storage means, means for` transferring clothesV from a point adjacent to said inlFigure l of the drawings, the, 'liookedends 37 of locking dogs 38 automatically pass over and engage cooperating clothes storage means, a carrier for'moving Ymechanism forY transferring clothes, the 'combination of clothes from said clothes.' storage means to a point displaced therefrom and locking means' associated with sa'id carrier and storage means' whereby the` carrier may' be locked to said storage means, means for automatically' unlocking said locking' means in the normal operation of moving'clothes from said clothes storage means to said carrier. Y

' 3. In clothes-handling mechanism for transferring. clothes, the' combination` of clothes storage means', a carrierfor moving clothes from s'aid clothesV storage meansA to a point.V displaced' therefrom, locking means associated withY said Vcarrier and storage means .whereby the carrier may 'be' 'locked' to said `storage means, and means for automaticallyV releasing said carrier in the normal operation ofA moving clothes from said clothes storage means to said carrier.

4. In clothes-handling mechanism, the combination of the frame'of clothes-treating machine, clothes storage' means, and lazy-tongs mechanism Vextending VYtherebetween for transferring clothes from one to the other, said lazy-tongs being biased to a position 'adjacent` to said clothes?Y treatingmachine'frame. I

5. In clothes-handling mechanism, the combination of a clothes-'treating machine frame, clothesAV storage means, lazy-tongs mechanism extending therebetween for transferring clothesA from one tothe other, and means` connected to 'saidy lazy-tongs mechanism for biasing same in one 'direction.

6. In` clothes-handling mechanism, the combination ofA a clothes-treating machine frame, clothes storagemeans, lazy-tongs mechanism extending therebetween Vfor transferring clothes from one to the other,

and' means connected to said lazy-tongs mechanism mechanism to a position in proximity with said clothes-treating machine frame, and means responsive to the normal'operation of transferring clothes from said clothes stor-Y age means to said lazy-tongs' for' controlling the operation of said lazy-tongs. Y

7. In clothes-handling mechanism, the combination of a clothes-treating machine frame, clothes storage means, lazy-tongs mechanism` forctransferring clothes' between for biasing said lazy-tongs fil said clothes-treating machine frame and clothes storage means, and a Weight operatively connected to a linkof said lazy-tongs mechanism for biasing same to a position adjacent to said clothes-treating machine y ried by said carrier and arranged to lock sameV to said clothes storage means, andf clothes-holding means adapted to Vbe manually moved from said clothes storage means to said carrier, said lockingr member being A adapted to be released automatically in the Vet() normal operation of moving said `holding means to said carrier.

10; In clothes-handling mechanism', the combination of a clothes-treating machine frame, clothes storage means, a vcarrier for carrying clothes from one to the other, an automatically-actuated locking member carried by said carrier and arranged to' loclr same to said clothes storage means, clothesholding means adapted toV be moved from said clothes storage means to said carrier, said locking Vmember being adapted to be released automatically in the normal operation of moving said holding means to said carrier', and means operatively connected to the carrier for biasing said carrier to transfer the clothes from the clothes storage means to said clothes-treating machine rame.

11. An attachment for a'clothes-treating machine comprising lazy-tongs mechanism whereby clothes may be conveyed with respect to said machine during an operative movement o1e said lazy-tongs, and means operatively connected to a` link of the lazytongs for biasing said lazy-tongs to retracted position.

12. An attachment 'for a clothes-treating `machine comprising` lazy-tongs mechanism whereby clothes may be conveyed With respect to said machine during an operative movement of said lazy-tongs, latching means for holding said lazy-tongs in unretracted position, clothes-holding means, said latching means being provided with nnlatching means responsive to said clothes-holding means.

13. An attachment for a clothes-treating machine comprising lazy-tongs mechanism whereby clothes may be conveyed with respect to said machine during an operative movement of said lazy-tongs, means: operatively connected to a link of said lazy-tongs for biasing said lazy-tongs to retracted position, latching means for holding said lazytongs in unretracted position, clothes-holding means, and unlatching means for said latching means responsive to said clothesholding means.

14. In combination, clothes storage means, a clothes-treating machine frame, a carrier between said storage means and said treating machine frame biased to move to a position adjacent to said treating machine frame, said carrier being provided with latching means for holding same in proximity to said storage means, clothes-holding means, and unlatching means responsive to said clothes-holding means for unlatching said latching means.

Signed at Chicago, Illinois, this 28th of February, 1920.

WILLIAM R. HAGER.

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